127 hours (2010)

Danny Boyle's 127 hours is a movie I would not really recommend to anyone. As an adventure story, it comprises some dispenseful moments of claustrophobia and fear. But those moments loose their force because of the way the film rely on conventional flashbacks and predictable patterns of presenting fear and despair. The most positive aspect of the movie is perhaps that the main character, we might just as well say the only character, is surprisingly unsympathetic. Aaron Ralson is what one might call a spoiled brat. He indulges in adventures, not thinking about anyone else, never caring enough to let anyone know where he goes. That, of course, proves to be disastrous. Intentional or not, Ralson does not become any more sympathetic along the way. We just spend a couple of hours with him. Danny Boyle may have created an entertaining movie from material that on the surface looks very unpromising: a man stuck between a boulder and a canyon wall. But this film lacks the imagination or the insight to create a story beyond a conventional adventure.